


The Forest

by Narcissistic_Ninny



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Fairies, Knights - Freeform, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-14
Updated: 2014-01-14
Packaged: 2018-01-08 16:28:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1134895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Narcissistic_Ninny/pseuds/Narcissistic_Ninny
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sanji placed his hand over Zoro’s chest. “Your heart. It’s kind.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Forest

**Author's Note:**

> This is a late birthday gift for my darling, Jo. Hope you like it dear.

 

Too many things had gone wrong that morning. His men had died in an ambush by orcs. Only he had emerged from the bloodshed, and he had lost sight of his horse in the mist of the battle. Blood was seeping down his torso, from the spot where he had been run through with a sword, staining his wolf fur cloak he wore around his pauldron, padded around his shoulder armor. That open area in his armor that didn’t protect his shoulder and armpit had cost him more blood than he intended. 

Now he was wandering through the mist of the dark forest, the land thick with fog. It truly was dark in the forest; the bare-naked branches all were without leaves, the soil below his boots black and depressing. The sky behind the tall trees was grey; everything around him was lifeless and cold. His vision began to blur, pulse thrumming in his head. He had wandered in the forest too long, had gotten lost. He remembered the tales of the fairies and the will o’ the wisps, how they often got weary travelers lost, purposefully taking them in the wrong direction. He had heard of some creature that lived in the dark forest, heard there was something evil there. He had seen men walk into the forest, only half of them returning. All of them told of a demon, a supernatural creature that brought men and proud warriors to their knees. Of all the places he had to get lost in, he had to wander off into the dark forest. He cursed himself.

Zoro was getting exhausted, his energy wearing thin, and starting to get thirsty, getting too hot in his metal armor. It felt too heavy on his shoulders. He was getting paranoid of his surroundings, and as a result, was getting him nowhere. He was beginning to loose feeling in his arm, exhaustion wearing him down.

Eventually, his body gave up on him, even if his mind didn’t want to admit defeat. He fell on the dirt, his armor digging uncomfortably into his flesh on impact, until he rolled onto his back. He stared at the trees above him, looked at the sky peeking through the leaves and branches, wondering if he would see it again.

Then, her face came to his mind. He smiled weakly, seeing her bright blue eyes, the playfulness in which she always carried herself. Her black hair was in her face, getting in her eyes, her pale skin white like snow. He saw her, felt a happiness he hadn’t felt in a long time, remembering her. He had missed her terribly, but there she was, looking down at him with expressive eyes, reaching out and touching his cheek.

He flinched away from her touch, widening his eyes, realizing the hand on his face wasn’t from his imagination. He focused his eyes, and saw that the figure before him didn’t belong to a young girl, but a man. The sun was behind him, his pale skin glowing.

Zoro passed out as gentle fingers touched his face again.  

 

***

 

When he woke, he didn’t notice the heat of the fire or his half undressed state. He reached out for his sword on instinct, but his fingers touched nothing but air. His armor wasn’t in sight, nor his sword. He felt vulnerable without them, in some place he didn’t recognize. He looked around, noticing he was inside a cave. A fire was burning not too far from him. His body ached, but not like the pain that overwhelmed him before. There was a sort of numbness to his body. Then, he saw the man he had seen before darkness took over, sitting on the other side of the fire.

The man spoke. “You’re awake.”

Zoro didn’t answer. He needed to think, consider what situation he was in. He didn’t seem like he was a prisoner, at least, the man wasn’t hostile towards him. He looked down at himself. His armor was gone, his upper half naked and exposed. He was laid over his own wolf fur cloak, and he was no longer bleeding, nor dying.

The man spoke up again. “I healed you.”

Zoro had no idea what he meant by that, but he felt exhaustion coming down on him, outweighing his confusion. He closed his eyes, muttering, “Thank you,” before he let sleep take him.

 

***

 

The one who cared for him was odd. Not only was he pale, but his skin glowed, like he was a light, shining from the inside. His pale skin made him seem translucent. He walked around, completely naked. He didn’t have a shed of clothing. The first time he had woken in the cave and saw him, he had mistaken the glow of his skin for something else, thinking it came from the fire burning between them. He hadn’t noticed anything wrong until the second time he woke.  The more he looked at him, the more it became apparent he wasn’t a man at all. He wasn’t human. He was a supernatural creature, the ones the legends spoke of.

“You were asleep for some time.” He said the next time he woke; cocking his head to the side, stray strands of blond hair falling in his eyes. “Do all humans sleep as much as you do?”

Zoro closed his eyes again. “Only when they have been injured and stabbed.”

“Oh.”

Zoro sat up as much he could, wincing from the pain. “What are you supposed to be? Are you a fairy?”

“Yes.” Zoro stared into his eyes. When the blonde didn’t seem to be joking, he snorted. “You laugh?”

“A fairy. I heard the stories of a fairy who killed many men who went into the forest.”

“There are plenty of fairies in this forest.”

“So you’ve never killed anyone?”

Zoro snorted again.

The fairy placed a foot, caked with mud, thick with earth and mud, the soles of his feet dark brown, nearly black, on his shoulder. He pressed hard on his wound, enough to make Zoro wince. His skin glowed blue, like his eyes, and his teeth grew sharp, fingernails turning into sharp claws. “I am keeping you alive,” he said. Voice a hiss. “Do not forget I can take your life just as easily.”

“Then why are you keeping me alive, shitty fairy?” Zoro asked.

The fairy went back to his normal state. Then, slowly, he grinned.

 

***

 

Zoro eyed him from under his lashes. The creature’s fingers on his chin, bright blue eyes on the scars he had collected over the years. His touches always seemed to linger, his eyes seeming to follow him closely. The fairy took care of him. He fed him, nursed his wounds, made a fire to make sure he stayed warm through the night. Every day, he would touch his arm, his hip, his thigh, the spot on his shoulder where the sword had run through his body. Every day he would spread his thin, long fingers over his wound. Every day it healed a little. He was slowly getting better. His skin would glow, just like the creatures’.

It bothered him. More often than not, he woke to the blonde’s eyes on him. When he meditated, he felt the creature’s gaze. He would have grown accustomed to it if not for how uncomfortable he felt, those too bright blue eyes on him. It was an unnaturally bright blue, obvious that it didn’t belong to any human eyes.

When he wasn’t staring, he was asking a question about humans. It amazed Zoro how little the fairy knew about humans. When Zoro wanted to walk, the fairy would lead him through the forest, fingers grazing tree bark as he walked past the trees. Flowers blossomed as he passed them, the naked branches bursting with green life. Zoro's boots would crackle as he crunched leaves under his feet. It didn’t look like the dark forest at all when the fairy was near.  

The fairy was in the middle of the sun-drenched forest, standing in the middle of the green grass, heavy with dew. Leaves and flowers coated his skin, vines and leaves twirling around his slender hips and legs. There were flowers in his hair, along with blades of grass, all tangled in his thick hair. If the fairy were a woman, Zoro would have thought him beautiful. His features were soft, lips too full and pink, hair golden like the sun. He was always glowing, his skin, his eyes.

He was the heartbeat of the forest.

_The fairies, they are known for making proud, strong warriors pin for them._

The fairy stepped up to him, closing the gap between them, his fingers finding their way in his hair. “Your hair, it’s green.” He said. “It’s odd, I’ve never seen it before.” He laughed, breathy and awkward. “I like it.”

Zoro ignored what he said. “Do you have a name?

The fairy looked at him like he was an idiot. “Every one has a name. Even the trees have names.”

“Fine. What is yours?”

“Sanji.”

“Sanji,” he repeated. He had never heard of a name like that before. It sounded interesting. “My name is Zoro.”

“That’s an odd name.” The fairy grinned. “I like it.”

 

***

 

“You’re healing me,” he said. Sanji was quiet, his eyes looking out to the forest. “But not enough,” Zoro continued. “Not completely.”

Sanji then turned to look at him. He closed the distance between them, kneeling between Zoro's legs, his hands soft on Zoro's rough face. “If you heal completely, you’ll leave me.”

He didn’t say it, but Zoro heard what he meant to say.

_I’ll be alone._

 

***

 

The blonde cocked his head to the side again. He seemed to do that a lot. “Do humans usually smell this bad?”

“Only when they haven’t bathed in fuck knows how long.”

“Bathed?”

“Yeah, bathing. Don’t you wash yourself?”

“You mean in the water?”

“Yes, in the water.”

“We can go to the river if you like.”

The fairy led him to a river a few miles out from where they were. Zoro stripped off his clothing and washed himself. Sanji stayed on the damp rocks, watching him. He had never been ashamed, or embarrassed by his scarred body, but the way Sanji was watching him, he felt flustered under his heated gaze.

When he was done, he dressed, and the fairy led the way, singing as he went.

 

***

 

“Why didn’t you kill me?” he asked.

He had asked before, but had never gotten an answer. He felt somehow, that this time was different.

“You’re different from other men.”

“How?”

Sanji placed his hand over Zoro’s chest. “Your heart. It’s kind.”

“Funny, I’ve never been accused of being kind.”

Sanji looked at him.  “There are legends about you too.”

“Me?”

“The great swordsman, Roronoa Zoro.” He said. “Men said you were a heartless demon, a ruthless killer.” Sanji smiled, warm and sincere. “But you are kind.”

_The fairies, they are known for making proud, strong warriors pin for them. They are called the love talkers, you mustin’ listen to a word they say boy._

Zoro stayed silent.

The fairy’s fingers stayed over his chest, his hand warm on his flesh. His face was inches from his. Zoro wondered when did he start letting the fairy get that close to him. Sanji leaned in closer, just a breath away from Zoro, whispered, “You belong with me.”

 

***

 

“Fuck.”

Zoro stopped skinning the rabbits he had hunted, looking at Sanji. “What did you say?”

“Shit.”

“Huh?”

“You say those words when you are upset.”

“I guess I do,” he said, thinking about it. “Are you upset now?”

“No. I just wanted to say it. I like how it sounds.”

“So you’re not upset.”

“No.”

Zoro chuckled. “Okay.”

 

***

 

That night he dreamed of Kuina. He dreamed about that last night they snuck out of her parent’s home, playing outside at night. He dreamed of her dying alone in her home, in the dark, no one there with her in her final moments.

He was sweating and shaking, his shivering didn’t stop until Sanji touched his arm and whispered in his ear. He lifted his arm, and Sanji fit inside on the space on his side, his face hidden in his neck. His soft breath against his throat calmed him.

Zoro cleared his throat. “I had a bad dream,” he said.

“I know.”

He felt Sanji's fingers on his chest. “Was it about this?”

Zoro covered his hand with his own, their fingers over his scar that ran from his shoulder to hip. “No.” he said. “A little. I got this scar when I tried fulfilling a promise I made a long time ago.”

Sanji hummed, in a way Zoro learned to recognize as Sanji's ‘I don’t understand or care’ hum. “I could heal your scar.”

“No. Leave it.”

“Why?”

“Memories.”

Sanji made a face. “Stupid human,” he scoffed.

Zoro grinned. “Asshole fairy.”

 

***

 

“Were you always a famous knight?”

“No.” Zoro said. He smiled fondly, “Actually, I used to be a sailor.”

“Sailor?”

“Do you know what a sailor is?”

Sanji shook his head.

“Sailors are men who travel, not on land, but on the ocean.”

“The ocean,” he said slowly. Sanji looked at him with big blue eyes. “I heard of it before. Tell me about the ocean.”

Of course he had never seen the ocean.

He told him about the ocean, about it’s vast and endlessness. How unforgiving it could be. How peaceful the ocean was after a storm. How beautiful it was.

Zoro just didn’t tell Sanji that the ocean couldn’t compare to his eyes.

 

***

 

He picked up his sword. Sanji no longer hid his sword and armor from him. He went out, practicing some days, training to do what he was meant to do. He closed his eyes. Sometimes, when he focused, he could see Kuina, the one he made the promise to so long ago. Sanji sat on a rock, staring at him. He was sure to not lean against the tree. The fairy was apparently afraid of spiders. _They are disgusting, shitty bugs._

“What kind of fucking fairy are you anyways?”

Sanji bared his teeth. “The kind that renders human flesh.”

“I’ve never heard of a fairy that was afraid of bugs. You live in the forest. I thought you would be used to it.”

“I’m not. We are done speaking of this.”

Zoro grinned, but let it go.

He trained, Sanji's eyes following his movement, every swing of his sword, on his scar. He hadn’t tried to convince him to heal the scar, but he still stared like he thought about it. Sanji eventually stopped looking, gathering flowers in his arms, sitting on the rock again. The swordsman concentrated on his training, closed his eyes, swearing he could hear Kuina, her instructions, even her taunts in his head.

“You love to fight,” Sanji said. When he started talking, Zoro found it best to stay silent, let the fairy talk until he asked him a question. “You’re going to go back, aren’t you? You’re going to fight again.”

“I have to go back,” Zoro said.

“Why?”

With a sigh, he lowered his sword, turned until he was fully facing Sanji. “I have to keep my promise,” he said.

Sanji frowned. He looked down at his lap, and Zoro noticed he had been making a crown with the flowers he had gathered. “You can stay here in the forest with me. I can protect you.”

“I don’t need protecting.”

“Perhaps not. But if you leave, you will become a strong warrior, you will be remembered for the battles you won. You will travel, take a wife, and you will die a violent death. You will be a legend long after you have died, but in that life, you will have never known peace.”

“And if I stay?” he asked.

Sanji looked up, walked towards him, setting the crown of flowers on his head, his fingers running through his green hair.

“I’ll love you.”

 

***

 

Zoro, do you think we’ll be together when we get older?

I don’t know. I never thought about it.

My father told me my mother and him used to fight when they were children, but over the years, when they got older, they became friends. Friendship turned into love. Do you think that’ll happen to us?

Zoro woke up.

He was sweating; beads of perspiration running down his temple and down his spine, making him shiver. It wasn’t often he dreamt of Kuina, but sometimes, he remembered the small things. The conversations they had, the days they shared fishing by the creek in his home village, the days they shared and the days they spent the nights catching fireflies.

Sanji nuzzled closer to him, tucked himself against his side. His fingers ran up and down on his chest, tracing the trail of smooth scar tissue that ran from his shoulder to his hip in a lazy trace, soft huffs of breath against his skin.

“Tell me about the ocean again,” he whispered, cheek pressed against his chest.

The fairy never asked him to talk about his nightmares, never asked if he was okay, he never asked or said the things humans would say. It was nights when he dreamt of Kuina that Zoro was thankful for his behavior. His chest rose as he inhaled, sucking in deep breaths, exhaling. Sanji didn’t rush him either, let him breath until he calmed. When he was better, Zoro spoke. “Have I told you about the sand? And sea shells?”

“No. But tell me about sea shells. Those sound interesting.”

“You can find seashells scattered in the sand, they come in many shapes and sizes. But the interesting thing about them is that you can press your ear to the shell, and you can hear the sound of the ocean.”

“What does the ocean sound like?”

“It sounds like,” he said. He stopped. Laughed.

“What’s so funny?”

“I can’t describe it. Sometimes, the ocean can be calm, and the waves sound like a sigh, other times, it roars, when there’s thunder and a storm, the ocean roars. Like a lion.”

Sanji's head on his chest, he could feel his hot breath on his skin, the strands of his hair ticking him. “I want to see the ocean.”

Zoro ran his fingers through his hair, soft like silk, like the petals of the flowers he kept in his hair.

“I can take you to see the ocean one day.”

“One day,” Sanji whispered, barely heard over the crackling fire. 

 

***

 

Zoro put on his armor, armor he hadn’t worn in months.  He put on his chest place, then put the wolf’s fur around his shoulder, pulling on his gauntlets last. Sanji sat on the dirt and grass, knees drawn to his chest, watching him with calculating eyes. “You’re leaving.”

“I am.”

Sanji looked away. “Leave then.”

He walked to him, kneeling on the floor in front of him. “I’ll come back.”

The fairy, for the first time in months, gave him a cold look, staring at him in silence. The swordsman let out a sigh, standing to his feet. He made it the cave’s entrance, then stopped, turned around.

“I’ll come back, you know.”

Nothing.

“I don’t break my promises,” Zoro continued. “I’ll come back and I’ll take you to see the ocean.”

Sanji's lips, his perfect lips turned up in a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. The legs in front of his chest didn’t lower all the way, but his shoulders relaxed, titling his chin up in a gesture Zoro learned to read as anxious or curious, sometimes excitement laced with hope.

“I’ll be waiting. Asshole human.”

 

***

 

Every time he saw flowers, he thought of Sanji. How they were always living in his hair, how vines and leaves wrapped around his waist and hugged his hips. He remembered how the fairy always smelt of flowers, of the pollen and the sweet perfume of the petals.

The flowers near Mihawk’s castle were few, mostly popping here and there in the sand. The older swordsman lived in a castle near the sea. Zoro woke every morning to the sound of the crashing waves, the smell of salt in the air.

Perona frequently made him take walks her beside the ocean. He had been training with the swordsman for two months, and he still had no idea why the witch was living there . He couldn’t put his finger on what kind of relationship they had, and thought best to think about it.

The ocean lapped forwards their feet, licking at his toes. The pink haired witch rarely used her powers outside of making animals talk and levitating off the ground to float by his side when he walked. His first night in the castle, she had sniffed his cloak and said she could smell the fairy on him.

While Mihawk never spoke a word to him outside of simple instructions or technique, Perona inquired about his life persistently. It almost reminded him of Sanji. The swordsman trained him in the mornings and in the late evening, Zoro thought of his promise, the one he was working on fulfilling, and the last promise he made.

He thought of flowers.

 

***

 

Everything was just as he remembered it. The forest bathed in light, peaking through the leaves in the trees. The flowers in Sanji's hair, his bright blue eyes, Sanji's lips were in a firm, tight line. His fingers, soft as ever, touched his face, ghosted over the scar he got over his eye. It brought back memories of those nights they spent tucked into each other’s sides, the fairy’s fingers on his scar.

“Fuck,” he said, all too seriously.

Zoro laughed.

“I told you not to leave. I would have protected you.”

“But I wouldn’t have kept my promise.”

“Did you fulfill your promise?”

“I did,” Zoro smiled.

Sanji didn’t smile back, kept frowning, finger still tracing the vertical scar over his eyes.  “I brought you something,” he said in an attempt to get him to stop frowning.

“Did you?” Sanji glowed a little brighter.  

Zoro nodded, reaching under the faulds that protected his hips and waist, pulling Sanji's present from his pant pocket. He took out a seashell, placing it in Sanji's palm. Sanji's fingers from his other hand touched it. “What is it?”

“Remember when I told you about the sand, and the seashells?” Sanji nodded, eyes still lowered. “That’s a seashell.”

Sanji put it to his ear, eyes narrowed, listening carefully. Then he smiled, “I can hear it! I can hear the ocean!”

Before he could react, Sanji threw his arms around him. Zoro couldn’t find it in him to embrace him back. He thought of the armor he was wearing, cold steel against Sanji's naked skin. “Aren’t you cold?”

“No?” Sanji cocked his head.

Zoro chuckled, closing his arms around him.

Sanji stood on his toes, reaching up and kissing Zoro on the lips.

In the back of his mind, Zoro thought of the legend of strong warriors pinning for supernatural creatures; weakening them with lust. Zoro didn’t care if he was under a spell, he gave himself completely to the kiss, Sanji’s skin glowing brighter, fingers unforgiving as they tugged on his hair. Zoro messed his hair back, until all the flowers fell from his blond locks.

_If you stay, I’ll love you._

 

***

 

Sanji stopped at the edge of the dark forest, toes still on the lush grass, standing stark still, blue eyes wide.

“Come on,” Zoro said.

“I have never left the forest before.”

“I’ll protect you,” he said, holding out his hand.

Sanji took a step towards him, curling their fingers together. They walked for miles, fingers joined, Sanji's grip on Zoro loosening until he was relaxed, but never let go.

 

***

 

“Do I have to wear human clothes? It itches.”

“You do when you’re not in the forest. Deal with it.” Zoro wasn’t going to put up with his complaining. He had to wear clothes all the time and he never complained.

“I thought you liked my body?”

“I do, the clothes are not for me though.”

Sanji walked beside him, lips in a tight lip, the way he pursed them when he was deep in thought. “Are humans offended by nakedness?”

“Most are.”

Sanji made a face. “Asshole humans.”

 

***

 

Sanji gasped.

He looked at the ocean longingly, his mouth parted, looking like the breath was taken form him. He was so awestruck, Zoro took the time to look at him, his beautiful face. His blue eyes, it looked like he belonged there, like the ocean had always been calling him, like Zoro was meant to bring him there, meant to be with Sanji in that moment.

Sanji looked at him. “It’s beautiful, just like you said.”

Zoro's thumb grazed his cheekbones, disappearing under the curtain of blonde hair. “It’s beautiful, just like you.”

Sanji smiled, beaming, lighting up like he was shining from within, his arms encasing Zoro's shoulders, titling his head to look at him. Zoro cupped his face, kissing his lips. He tasted like sweet pollen, lips soft and moist. Zoro might be under a spell, might have fallen for Sanji - _fallen hard_ -, but Zoro didn’t really care.

 

  

**Author's Note:**

> So, in my head, Sanji was supposed to be a cross between Tinker Bell and Poison Ivy. I’m not sure if that came across as well as I wanted it to, but hey I tried. I saw a picture that Oda did of Zoro in knight’s armor, and well, this happened. I had toyed with the idea of making this a crack fic, and making Sanji a really flamboyant fairy, but I couldn’t do it.
> 
> Also, I was kinda in a rush, if there are any mistakes, please let me know and I'll fix it right away!


End file.
